Here we come, Singapore!
My family had been looking forward to the Singapore trip for many months. Since the Dubai trip in 2022, we hadn't made any big trips in a while. My wife and kids used to do a countdown of sorts and get increasingly excited with each passing day. A break from our busy schedule in Pune is what I badly wanted.
Day 0: Mumbai Airport, Night Flight
As the flight was from Mumbai, we had to book a cab. On the journey we went through the newly opened Mumbai-Pune Missing Link tunnel, and it was a great experience going through such a long eight-lane tunnel. Truly it is marvel of engineering.
After reaching the airport, we checked our baggage in and cleared security and immigration without any hiccups. As we were walking in the duty-free mall, my kids started saying "Here we come, Singapore!" in a loud voice, which was amusing to me. The way kids pick up new turns of phrase and use it in different contexts never ceases to amaze me.
We had a few hours of waiting at the gate and I was in a half-asleep daze. Thankfully, the kids had fallen asleep in those chairs. Once it was time to board, one of the girls was too tired to walk, so it became a bit of a task to carry her to the second last row of the plane.
The aircraft was of a type that is usually used for domestic air travel, so it was rather unsuitable for the six-hour flight ahead of us. I kept falling in and out of sleep throughout the flight.
The next morning I heard the welcome announcement from the flight deck that the descent into Singapore had begun. I was glad to be done with the uncomfortable flight.
Day 1: Art Science Museum, Flower Dome, Hawker Centre
After landing, we cleared the immigration headed to the counter to pick up the local SIM cards. That took a while as each one of them had to be activated manually by the lady at the counter using a mobile app that was having some connectivity issues.
A short while later, we met my parents and sister who had come from Chennai. I was surprised to see that my brother and sister-in-law had also made it for the trip, as they had originally told us they wouldn't be able to come. Only my mother was in the know, so it was a very welcome surprise. I was telling my wife that it was sad that they could not come, just the day before.
There was a pre-booked 9-seater cab that arrived, and we started making our way to the hotel. There were many beautiful trees (with intact branches) lining the spotless roads.
We had booked four rooms in the hotel, and that had turned out to be confusing for the hotel staff checking us in.
Instead, they were very particular in knowing who is going to stay in which room, and whose name each room is booked under. Ideally, they could have taken all our passports, scanned them quickly and given us the key cards for all the rooms, but hotels tend to like their paperwork, especially when checking in.
Even though we were tired, we headed out shortly after as we had to make the most of the trip. The Art Science Museum was first according to my wife's carefully researched plan. It was fun for everyone.
After that, we went to the iconic Marina Bay Sands hotel and took some pictures and enjoyed the views. We were all quite hungry at this point so we had a late lunch at a Shake Shack. Most people got burgers. I wanted to save some space for dinner, so I got a malted pandan shake which was great.
The Flower Dome was nearby, and it had a lot of plants and animatronic dinosaurs which were good fun. We ended the evening's sightseeing with the free light show in Gardens By the Bay, and headed back to the hotel. On the way back to the hotel we noticed a Hawker Centre called Lau Pa Sat, so everyone above 24 and below 40 went there for dinner.
There were so many choices, it was almost overwhelming. I tried some Roast Duck, and it was not like I expected. The meat was soft and juicy and had an interesting flavour. I can't say I loved it, but I may try it at some other places before making up my mind on this dish.
My sister had bought some egg tarts and that was one of the best thing I had eaten on the entire trip. I was a pastry filled with a custard filling that was a perfect mix of sweet and savoury.
I had the most amazing night's sleep of 9+ hours due to the mild jet lag, and woke up the next day at 9:30.
Day 2: Universal Studios
Multiple people had recommended that we reach Universal Studios at its opening time of 10:30. We could obviously not do that because we all woke up late. Our body clock felt something like 7 or 8 in the morning, but due to the time zone shift, it was 9:30 over there.
The hotel staff at the buffet breakfast were over eager in shutting it down and cleaning up. We were told that the breakfast ends at 10:30, but even at 10:15 there would be people removing the labels off the items and removing the food. It was a bit embarrassing to load up the plates in a hurry before the food was spirited away. Soon after the maître d' would walk up to each table and say that they need to turn over the tables and prepare the dining hall.
Universal Studios was in Sentosa Island, and we took another 9-seater cab. At the entrance there was a huge spinning globe which was the logo of the studio. Many people were taking photos in front of it, and it was a challenge timing the photo just right when the large letters spin into view.
The staff at Universal Studios were extremely particular about the height restrictions for the rides. There was an amusing (for us, not the kid, obviously) incident where one girl was allowed in and the other was not even though we told them they are identical twins. They got out their little rulers and were absolutely convinced they are of different heights. To our knowledge, there is less than a cm of difference between them. For marginal cases, I'm not sure what's the point of taking out a ruler, but that's the kind of precision that one would expect from a highly-functioning, well-oiled machine of a country.
Two of the rollercoaster rides were completely indoors, so they were air-conditioned. They managed to pack a surprising amount of acceleration in the space so it was thrilling. One of the rides was in complete darkness, so it added another level of uncertainty and fun as we couldn't tell what was going to happen next.
The kids were allowed on a water ride, where a boat would go on a lazy river kind of thing, but it was fast enough to be fun.
We took one girl on a small (but fast enough) rollercoaster, and she loved it. She said "it's the best rollercoaster ever" and convinced the other girl to ride as well for the second time. The other one burst into tears, which is why we only sent the other one, for the first time.
My sister commented that the concept of an "Express Pass" has ruined theme parks for her. I agree, I'm not sure I'll ever be able to wait upwards of 45 minutes for a ride ever again. The Express Pass — while expensive — was totally worth the double price. My brother and sister rode one ride five times, which would have taken two hours or more if they had waited in the queue. I did feel a bit awkward to walk past the long queues, so I avoided making eye contact with anyone. It's not fair.
For lunch, we ate at the restaurant in the park. Some of the items were decent, others were disappointing.
Workforce Demographics
By this time, it became impossible to not notice that the people wiping down the tables and clearing up the trays were very old. Not early-70s old, late-70s old. Later I read that there is next to no unemployment benefits in Singapore, so it's common for elderly people to work such jobs to keep up with the high cost of living. Now, I am not sure if this is a good thing, or a bad thing. It is good that there are jobs available for those who need it, but would you want to see a 75 year old person to wipe down your table at a food court?
Also, many blue collar jobs like construction, sanitation, and maintenance were mostly done by Indian expats. It was quite easy to guess who's a Singaporean Indian and who's an expat. I can't use the word 'immigrant', because it's next to impossible to emigrate to Singapore.
Dinner
As we were in Sentosa Island, we wanted to go for a cable car ride, but it was closed for maintenance. Even the luge was closed by that time, so we took the free monorail across the water and entered a shopping mall for dinner.
My wife had found this chain of restaurants called Din Tai Fung, and I was also quite excited to get the opportunity to dine there. Din Tai Fung's speciality is soup-filled dumplings. There is a proper technique of eating these where you are meant to place the dumpling in a soup spoon, carefully open one with a chopstick and drink the soup before eating it. I did not do that because I wasn't sure I'd do it right, so I popped the whole thing into my mouth. It was clear why the restaurant is well regarded (at least on social media).
They also had excellent fried rice of various types (pork, prawns, egg) which we enjoyed. For dessert, (true to their nature) they had chocolate-filled mochi dumplings. I was originally unsure as to how good they would be, but they were fantastic. It was like an explosion of hot chocolate in your mouth. The consistency of the chocolate was perfect.
Day 3: Two Zoos, giraffes and pandas
We had planned to go to the Singapore Zoo and the River Wonders Zoo. Once again, we woke up late and rushed through the video game of collecting breakfast items before they vanished.
Singapore Zoo
The Zoo was a half hour ride from the hotel. At every tourist spot we had to do the religious ritual of scanning in the ticket QR codes. I joked with my Dad, that not a single person can have fun by accident over here. There is no escape from the turnstiles and the QR codes. My Dad said that it's understandable because everything is so expensive.
The Zoo was excellent. The landscaping, the maintenance was of the highest order. I noticed that the animals were much closer and more accessible than what I am used to. There was one enclosure that we were in, where there were ring-tailed lemurs just sitting on the steps. There were also signs saying "If you touch me, I will bite". I am sure this approach will work in some other countries where people treat signs as guidelines and not actual rules.
We had pre-booked a giraffe feeding, so at the appointed time, we headed over there. We were given a basket of carrots and my wife and kids were all able to feed the massive giraffe. We were instructed to not touch the giraffe, (so we didn't) but the giraffe licked my hand which was definitely not something that happens every day.
I have fed a great many animals at zoos and parks, but this might be the coolest one. Maybe feeding an orca or a beluga might top this. It was interesting to note that two of the giraffes were previously (I can't say "originally" 😉) at the Mysore Zoo, so that was a nice connection to home.
Some of the memorable animals that we got to see were tree kangaroos, kangaroos (first for my kids), cassowaries, tamarins, naked mole rats, bearded pigs, gharials, leaf and stick insects, various snakes and a gila monster.
As we were getting late for the zoo next door, we got some food from some fast food franchises and headed there. There was a water ride that was going to close shortly.
River Wonders Zoo
There was an amusing incident while checking in here. There was a Singaporean Indian lady scanning people in. The queue of people behind me was not following the expected protocol, and the lady loudly said, "Everyone, behind the yellow line. I will not scan any one in until you stand behind the line". That got everyone to queue up in a better way. "When in Rome...", I guess.
The River Wonders Zoo had a water ride that showed a lot of interesting animals. There was a huge anteater and a jaguar amongst others. The water enclosures had some gharials and sturgeons which are sadly both critically endangered.
The panda exhibit was the highlight of the Zoo. It was a large air-conditioned enclosure which had a Red Panda (which are also found in N.E. India) and a Giant Panda.
The panda was lying on its back and furiously munching on bamboo. It looks exactly as cute as you would expect it to be. I look forward to the next time I see a panda.
We took some photos and made our way to the IMM Mall which was a half hour away. We all had a chance to take a relaxing power nap to recharge after a day of lot of walking.
IMM Mall
IMM Mall is an outlet mall where we can get some good deals. My wife had wanted to buy a certain kind of bag (Coach Tabby), which was rather expensive in two separate places we checked. I wanted her to be able to get one, so we kept checking in every place that we could find. Finally, on the third attempt, my wife spotted one which was on an inconspicuous rack, and it turned out to be a fraction of the price of the other ones that we saw. I was very happy that she got to buy something that she wanted for a long time, and that too for a steal of a price.
It was here, that we experienced a distasteful incident. We were trying out gelato samples so that we could decide what flavour we wanted to get. There was a middle-aged lady who walked up to the store, and was also trying out the gelato samples. One of my daughters tripped and bumped into the lady, the kind where you say "I'm sorry" and get on with whatever you are doing. However, the lady had a disgusted and offended expression, and she continued for several seconds. She then got so worked up, and walked off angrily without getting any gelato. I understand that kids bump into people once in a while, and feeling surprised or even mildly annoyed is a reasonably reaction. This lady acted (and I am projecting here) as if a animal covered in mud bumped into her and ruined her dress. Though we were upset at this interaction, I feel a sense of pity for her.
Of course, there were lot nicer interactions as well that offset this one unpleasant incident. There was that time in the airport where an old aunty asked me if my kids were twins and she was sweet.
Another time, I was buying barbecued meat (kinda like jerky) and one lady gave me a packet of barbecued chicken for free which I thanked her profusely for.
Later that night, we said goodby to my brother and sister-in-law as they were leaving that night.
Day 4: Oceanarium
A bit later, we headed to the Oceanarium. I had last been there in 2004, and from what I can remember they have done some good upgrades. The marine exhibits were all very impressive and meticulously maintained.
In particular, I liked the jellyfish, weedy sea dragon and sea horses. I was once again disappointed to learn that some kinds of hammerhead sharks are critically endangered.
After a good pan-Asian lunch, we went to the luge. We booked four trips and it was fun. After reaching the bottom, we had to get on a chair lift to reach the top again. That was quite fun as well. On top of the supporting structure for the steel cables there were some cockatoos which was nice to see.
Four rides took almost an hour due to waiting in queue for the ride downhill and also waiting for the chair lift.
We also went to Bugis Street, later that evening for some light shopping.
Day 5: The way back home
My Dad left in the morning, so I met him a bit early while he was eating breakfast and said goodbye to him.
My wife and I headed to China Town to buy some small gifts and souvenirs. The shops there were selling mostly similar things, and we found a few good deals.
In the afternoon, we checked out and headed to the airport and had one amazing last meal at Din Tai Fung and started making our way to the airport gates.
There was a Mother's Day event happening so both our kids coloured a card and got a free polaroid picture that we gave my mother. It's always nice to get free stuff and it felt like a nice touch, after all the money we spent.
Walking in the airport, I spotted a 400+ page Leuchtturm 1917 notebook which I bought impulsively, as I needed a new notebook for Bible/Church stuff. That turned out to be a good buy as the paper is great for fountain pens, and it's a joy to use.
An unpleasant six hour flight to Mumbai, we got onto a cab and reached home at 3 AM. I was glad to finally fall asleep in my own bed by 3:30.
Overall Verdict
It was a successful and enjoyable trip with family. My brother and sister-in-law coming along at the last minute made it more special. We all saw animals that we had never seen before and that was fun. As the kids were a bit older than the last big trip we did, we could spend more time on enjoying the country than logistics. I'd give it a solid 7.5/10, where 10 is a trip to outer space.